Nutrition Literacy in Relation to Nutritional Status Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults in Istanbul, Türkiye: A Hierarchical Regression Analysis

Background/Objectives: Although nutritional status is central to healthy aging, little is known about how it relates to nutrition literacy in community-dwelling older adults. We examined this association and whether it persisted after sequential adjustment for sociodemographic, health-related, and anthropometric characteristics. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 306 community-dwelling adults aged ≥65 years in Istanbul, Türkiye. Nutritional status and nutrition literacy were assessed using the Mini Nutritional Assessment–Short Form (MNA-SF) and the Evaluation Instrument of Nutrition Literacy on Adults, respectively. Sociodemographic, perceived health- and nutrition-related, and anthropometric data were collected. Group comparisons, Pearson correlations, and a three-block hierarchical multiple regression analysis were performed. Results: Overall, 4.2% of participants were malnourished and 38.9% were at risk of malnutrition; 8.5% had inadequate and 66.7% had adequate nutrition literacy. Nutrition literacy was weakly and positively correlated with waist-to-hip ratio, mid-upper arm circumference, and calf circumference. Nutrition literacy was positively associated with MNA-SF scores across all hierarchical models, and the final model explained 28.8% of the variance. Sex, employment status, perceived diet quality, calf circumference, and waist circumference were also associated with MNA-SF scores in the final model. However, after additional adjustment for age group and marital status, the association between nutrition literacy and MNA-SF scores was no longer statistically significant. Conclusions: Nutrition literacy was modestly and positively associated with nutritional status after sequential adjustment, but not after additional adjustment for age group and marital status. Given the cross-sectional design, the direction of this association cannot be established, and no inferences regarding interventions can be drawn. Longitudinal studies are needed to clarify its temporal nature and underlying mechanisms.